Rotary engine.



, IPATEINTBD DEC. 1a, 1906'. c. MoQUOWN.

ROTARY ENGINE; APPLICATION FILED APR. 5, 190a.

5 SHEETSSHEET 1.

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UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIoE. on Es McQUOWN. or eeovn CITY, o no.

ROTARYQENGINE.

.S peeification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 18, 1 90 A pplicationifiled Anril 5, 1906. Serial N310,006.

:T idZZ as mag concern: 3

Be .it known that 1, CHARLES MoQUoWN,

a citizen of the United .States, and .a resident of Grove City, in thecounty of Franklin and Estate of :Ohio, have invented a new and ImprovedittotaryEngineof which the following is;a clear, and exact description.

The invention relates to .a rotary engine in 'WlllGll astator orstationary casing lncloses a piston .orrotating driving member, which ismounted on and eccentrically of the engineshaft and .arranged .to bedriven in the stator .by the pressureof the steam, .the movement .andaction of the steam being controlled by a peculiarly-arranged abutmenthaving a =combined circular and oscillating movement within a housing,which itself is held to rock irregular line .3 3 .of Fig. 2.

- zticula-rly pointed/outin the claims.

' Reference is :to :be had-to theaccompanying drawings, whichillustrate, :as an example, the preferred embodiment of my invention.

the drawings, Figure 1 is .an .end elevation. of the invention withparts in sectionon .thetline 1 1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is .a horizontalsection through the engine on the line 2 2 of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is atransverse section on' the Figs. 4, 5, and 6 .a-re. transverse sectionsthrough'the working par-ts, essentially on the line 33 3 .of Fig. 2,and'showing said parts in three progressive positions. Fig. 7 a is adetail section on the line .7 7 of Fig. 3. Fig. 8 is a detail section onthe line 8 8 of ,Fig. 3. Fig. 9 is a fragmentary end elevation of therotor, showing the-driving-shatt in section. Fig. 10 is .a detailisectionon thecurved line 10 10 of Fig. 1, showing the arrangement forcontrolling the admission of steam to the engine; and Fig. 11 is adetail section of the packing.

, Theengine is mountedon a base 15. The stationary casing or statorwhich is sustained by the .base is in practice constructed of .a numberof :matching sections, as shown in Figs. 2 and .3, to facilitate theassemblage of the parts. -']In the type .of engine here shown the statorcomprises two circular working chambers 16, which are concentric to theengine-shaft 17. Each working cham- .ber 16 is directly contiguous toand com-municates with a laterally offset extensionc'hamber 18, theextension members 18 containing the abutment-housing, as will behereinafter fully set forth. The pairs of working chambers 16 andextension-chambers 18 are separated from each other by means of anenlarged circular chamber-19,

.and at each-end ofthe-engine similar enlarged circular chambers 20 arearranged. All of these parts, 16, 1'8, 19, and 20, are combined in onerigid structure suitably fastened on the base 15. boxes 21 alsosustainedon the base, and each end wall of the engine is provided with-astuffing-box gland 22, through which the shaft passes.

The rotor is carried by and forms a rigid part with the engine-shaft andis made .upof

three disks 23, 24, and 25,turning true in the respective chambers 20,1-9, and. '20 and rigidly .connected to each other by means of crank oreccentric pistons 26 and 27 ,the .cranked pistons 26 and 27 being set atone hundred and eighty (180) degrees from. each other and arranged tosweep through the respective chambers 16, while the end disks 23 .andare directly contiguous and fastened to the sections of the shaft 17.From the foregoing .it will appear that the'd-isks 23, 24, and 25 are,as the chambers 20, 19, and 20, concentric to the main shaft and in theoperation of the engine turn around the center thereof.

The abutments 28 are adapted to have combined oscillating and circularmovement in the respective working chambers 16 and The engine-shaft 17is mounted in coact with the respective cranked pistons 26 and 27,suitable packing 29 being applied to .the working faces of the,abutments toeffect steam tight vconnection with the pistons.

- The pistons are provided with similarpacking 30,- effectingsteam-tight connection with the inner walls of the working chambers 16.

The said abutments '28 are fastened to and formed, preferably, integralwith disks 31. These disks are two for each abutment, lying one at eachside, and they .are formedwith central orifices which loosely, yetsnugly,

surround the corresponding pistons '26 and 27. Saiddisks 31 are smallerthan the disks 23, 24, and 25 and-are arranged .to run with .aneccentric motion in the chambers 20,119, and'20. Asshown in Fig. 2, thedisks 31 of side of the disk 24 and the other in the right-- handchamber at the right-hand side of the disk 25. Owing to the oppositelocation of the pistons 26 and 27, the pairs of disks 31, related to theabutments 2 8, as well as the v abutments themselves, are disposedoppositely in the engine, as Fig. 2 clearly illustrates. Therefore uponthe movement of the rotor the disks 31 are given a planetary movement intheir respective chambers around the center of the shaft 17, thismovetive abutment-housing chambers 18.

ment imparting to the abutments 28 a combined radial or sliding and asidewise or oscillatory movement, causing the abutments to maintain trueengagement with their respective pistons at all times. I

As shown in Figs. 2, 4, 5, and 6, the abutment-housings 32 are circularin general form and are fitted to oscillate freely in the respecd a1housings are formed with cavities 33, (see Fig. 8,) in which theabutments are slidably received. They are also provided with walls 34,located in the cavities and fitted slidably incorresponding cavities 35,formed in the abutments. Said Walls 34 are provided with vent-passages36 to prevent compression in the cavities 35, and the outer walls of thecavities 33 have vent-orifices 37 to prevent compression in thesecond-named cavities. All of these vents communicate by passages 38with a vent-pipe 39, which runs horizontally along the side of theengine and opens into the atmosphere. The abutment-housings are furtherprovided with exhaust-cavities 40, which communicate with theexhaust-passages 41 by ports 42 and which communicate with the workingchambers 16 by ports 43, the abutments having ported grooves 44 in theirsides, which register with the ports 43 and formin passages leadingthereto, permitting the eriiaust of the steam from one side of theabutment and piston, while the live or expanding steam is acting on theother side. To each end of the engine a steam-pipe 45 leads. These pipescommunicate with curved steam-chambers 46 at each end of the engine andformed in in registry. The steam-ports 49 of the pistons pass inwardlongitudinally thereof and thence outward to the side walls of thepiston, so that the steam issuing from said ports may enter the workingchambers 16 to exert its motive influence on the pistons. For thepurpose of lightening the engine the pistons may:I be formed with blindcavities 50, if desire In the operation of the engine steam is admittedto the chambers 48 and initial movement is given to the shaft 17 and itsconnections. As the ports 49 run into registry with the ports 47 livesteam is admitted to the former ports, and immediately after the portsleave the position shown in Fig. 4 this steam enters the workingchamber, exerting a driving influence on the piston and causing theparts to run in the direction of the arrow indicated in Fig. 4, assumingsuccessively the positions shown in Figs. 3, 5, and 6, after which theparts continuing from the position shown in Fig. 6 reassume that shownin Fi 4, and the cycle of operations is completed. Meanwhile as thesteam is acting on one side of the piston when the parts reach theposition shown in Figs. 4 and 3 the port-groove 44 establishescommunication between the exhaust side of the working chamber and theport 43 and the spent steam is exhausted through the chamber 40 andports 42 and 41. During these operations the rotor-disks 23, 24, and 25run concentrically to the main shaft in their respective disk chambers,

'while the abutment-disks 31, moving in unison with the abutments, runeccentrically to the main shaft or with a planetary movement also in thesaid disk-chambers. The operation of the engine is at all times undercomplete control through the medium of the valves 48 and theiroperating-gear.

I prefer to employ in the engine packing of the form illustrated in Fig.11, which comprises two angular sections a, matching to give the packinga rectangular cross-seetional form, as the figure shows. Within thespace b in the packing-strip thus formed are arranged two members a ofwedge-shape form, between which a spring or springs (1 act, the springspressing the members 0 against the sections a and causing the same tospread, thus maintaining the sections firmly in engagement with thesurfaces to which the packing is applied.

Having thus described the preferred form of my invention, what Iactually claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A rotary engine having a stationary working chamber, an eccentricpiston operating therein, an abutment bearing on the piston, anabutment-chamber juxtaposed to the ing in which the abutment. isslidably car- Working chamber, a rocking abutment-housried, the abutmenthaving a curved end Wall snugly en aging the side of the piston, andpacking d evices acting between the abutment andthe piston at said endwall of the abutment. I

- 2. In a rotary engine, the combination of a working chamber, aneccentric piston operating therein, an abutment-chamber j uxtaposed tothe working chamber, a rocking abutment-housing located in the abutment,and a rocking and sliding abutment carried in the housing and engagingthe piston, said abutment and housing having ports therein toaccommodate the movement of the exing the abutment and piston comprisingdisks arranged one at each side of the working chamber and mountedloosely on the end portions of the piston.

' 4. .Arotary engine having a stator comprising acircular workingchamber, an enlarged disk-chamber at each end thereof and concentricthereto, and an abutment-housing.

chamber located atone side of the working chamber between thedisk-chambers, a main or engine shaft, a cranked piston connectedthereto and operating in the working chamber, rotor-disks attached totheengine-shaft and running concentrically in the disk-chamber, anabutment engaging the piston, an abutment --housing slida ihlyreceivingthe abut ment and rockably mounted in the abutment-. housing casing, andmeans connecting the abutment with. the piston -to maintainthe two inengagement with each other.

5. A rotary engine having a stator comprising a circular workingchamber, an enlarged disk-chamber at each end thereof and concentricthereto, and an abutment-housing chamber located at one side of theworking chamber between the diskchambers, a main or engine shaft, acranked plston connected thereto and operating in the working chan1-ber, rotor-disks attached to the engine-shaft and running concentricallyin the disk-chamber, an abutment engaging the piston, anabutment-housing slidably receiving the abutment and rockably mounted inthe abutment-housing casing,and means connecting the abutment with thepiston to maintain the two in engagement with each other, said meansconnecting the piston and abutment comprising abutment-disks attached toopposite edges of the abutment and mounted loosely on the ends of thepiston,the abutmentdisks running eccentrically in the diskchambersalongside of the rotor-disks.

6. A rotary engine having a circular working chamber, anabutment-housing chamber juxtaposed thereto, an eccentric pistonarranged to move through the working chamher, an abutment-housingarranged to rock in the abutment-housing chamber, an abutment engagingthe piston vand arranged to slide in the housing, and means connectingthe abutment with the piston to maintain the two in engagement, thepiston having a port for admitting the motive agent on one side of theabutment, and the abutment and housing having means for exhausting themotive agent from the otherside of the abutment.

7. A rotary engine having a circular working chamber, anabutment-housing chamber juxtaposed thereto, an eccentric pistonarranged to move through the working chamber, an abutment-housingarranged to rock in the abutment-housing chamber, an abutment engagingthe piston and arranged to slide in the housing, and means connectingthe abutment with the piston to maintain the two in engagement, theabutment having a cavity therein and the housing having an in' teriorwall slidably fitted in the cavity of the abutment. i

8. A rotary engine having a circular working chamber, anabutment-housing chamber juxtaposed thereto, an eccentric pistonarranged to move through the working chamber, an abutment-housingarranged to rock in the abutment-housingchamber, an abutment engagingthe, piston andarranged to slide in the housing, and means connectingthe abutment with the piston to maintain the two inengagement, theabutment having a cavity therein and the housing having an interior wallslidably fitted in the cavity of the abutment, and the engine havingvent-ports for preventing compression in the housing andabutment-cavity. I

In testimony whereof I' have signed my name to this specification in thepresenceof' two subscribing Witnesses.

CHARLES -MoQUOWN. Witnesses:

S. E. JOHNSTON, G. C. KELLER.

